The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, has approved the recruitment of 7,500 youths by Zamfara State Government to serve as special constabularies for community policing in their respective areas.
The state Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Usman Nagogo, disclosed this while addressing the first batch of the recruited youths in Gusau on Thursday.
Nagogo said that out of the number, 3,850 youths had been screened by the police as the first batch.
“We are transporting them to Police Training Colleges in Sokoto and Kaduna states for a two-month training, after which they would return to the state in December, and after their return, we are going to send another batch for training.
“All the successful candidates had been earlier selected by important personalities from their respective communities.
“If we recall, last year, the IGP had launched community policing to involve members of the general public in securing their communities,” Nagogo said.
According to him, Zamfara is the first state across the country to launch the programme with the highest number of members, NAN reports.
“After their two-month training, we are hoping to see changes as regard to addressing security challenges in the state,” he explained.
Speaking on behalf of the state government, the state Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Sulaiman Tunau, said the recruitment was part of the Gov. Bello Matawalle-led administration’s measure to address security challenges.
According to him, the youths, whose monthly salaries will be paid by the state government, are to be recruited across the 14 Local Government Areas of the state.
“Apart from supporting the government in tackling insecurity, the measures would also help in providing employment opportunities for the teeming youths in the state,” he said.